Montescaglioso
Encyclopedia
Montescaglioso is a town and comune
in the Province of Matera
, Basilicata
, southern Italy
.
The economy is mostly based on agriculture, including production of renowned oil and wine, as well as traditional food.
Historically, it was the centre of a county in the Norman Kingdom of Sicily
.
Italic tribe. The original nucleus of Montescaglioso grew substantially in the following centuries, thanks to trade with the nearby Greek town of Metaponto
. When the latter decayed in Roman times
, Montescaglioso further increased in importance. Archaeological findings include a large tuff wall dating from the 3rd century BC.
After the decline of the Western Roman Empire, Montescaglioso is mentioned first only in early medieval times. A Byzantine
stronghold, it was captured by the Normans after the year 1000, and housed an important Benedictine
community. Under the Angevin
and Aragon
ese dynasties of the Kingdom of Naples
, it belonged in sequence to the D'Avalos, Orsini, Loffredo, Grillo and Cattaneo feudal families.
Comune
In Italy, the comune is the basic administrative division, and may be properly approximated in casual speech by the English word township or municipality.-Importance and function:...
in the Province of Matera
Province of Matera
The Province of Matera is a province in the Basilicata region of Italy. Its capital is the city of Matera.It has an area of 3,447 km², and a total population of 203,837 . There are 31 comunes in the province . The main comunes by population are:- External links :* **...
, Basilicata
Basilicata
Basilicata , also known as Lucania, is a region in the south of Italy, bordering on Campania to the west, Apulia to the north and east, and Calabria to the south, having one short southwestern coastline on the Tyrrhenian Sea between Campania in the northwest and Calabria in the southwest, and a...
, southern Italy
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
.
The economy is mostly based on agriculture, including production of renowned oil and wine, as well as traditional food.
Historically, it was the centre of a county in the Norman Kingdom of Sicily
Kingdom of Sicily
The Kingdom of Sicily was a state that existed in the south of Italy from its founding by Roger II in 1130 until 1816. It was a successor state of the County of Sicily, which had been founded in 1071 during the Norman conquest of southern Italy...
.
History
The first settlements in the area date from the 7th century BC, belonging to the ApuliApuli
The Apuli were a Dacian tribe centered at the Dacian town Apulon near what is now Alba Iulia in Transylvania, Romania.Apuli has clear resemblance to Apulia, the ancient southeastern Italy region, which it is believe to have been settled by Illyrian tribes .Linguists use it as an example for the...
Italic tribe. The original nucleus of Montescaglioso grew substantially in the following centuries, thanks to trade with the nearby Greek town of Metaponto
Metaponto
Metaponto is a small town of about 1,000 people in the province of Matera, Basilicata, Italy. Administratively it is a frazione of Bernalda.-History:The town is best known for the ruins of the ancient Greek city of Metapontum...
. When the latter decayed in Roman times
Ancient Rome
Ancient Rome was a thriving civilization that grew on the Italian Peninsula as early as the 8th century BC. Located along the Mediterranean Sea and centered on the city of Rome, it expanded to one of the largest empires in the ancient world....
, Montescaglioso further increased in importance. Archaeological findings include a large tuff wall dating from the 3rd century BC.
After the decline of the Western Roman Empire, Montescaglioso is mentioned first only in early medieval times. A Byzantine
Byzantine Empire
The Byzantine Empire was the Eastern Roman Empire during the periods of Late Antiquity and the Middle Ages, centred on the capital of Constantinople. Known simply as the Roman Empire or Romania to its inhabitants and neighbours, the Empire was the direct continuation of the Ancient Roman State...
stronghold, it was captured by the Normans after the year 1000, and housed an important Benedictine
Benedictine
Benedictine refers to the spirituality and consecrated life in accordance with the Rule of St Benedict, written by Benedict of Nursia in the sixth century for the cenobitic communities he founded in central Italy. The most notable of these is Monte Cassino, the first monastery founded by Benedict...
community. Under the Angevin
Capetian House of Anjou
The Capetian House of Anjou, also known as the House of Anjou-Sicily and House of Anjou-Naples, was a royal house and cadet branch of the direct House of Capet. Founded by Charles I of Sicily, a son of Louis VIII of France, the Capetian king first ruled the Kingdom of Sicily during the 13th century...
and Aragon
House of Aragon
The House of Aragon is the name given several royal houses that ruled the County, the Kingdom or the Crown of Aragon.Some historiansGuillermo Fatás y Guillermo Redondo, Alberto Montaner Frutos, Faustino Menéndez Pidal de Navascués...
ese dynasties of the Kingdom of Naples
Kingdom of Naples
The Kingdom of Naples, comprising the southern part of the Italian peninsula, was the remainder of the old Kingdom of Sicily after secession of the island of Sicily as a result of the Sicilian Vespers rebellion of 1282. Known to contemporaries as the Kingdom of Sicily, it is dubbed Kingdom of...
, it belonged in sequence to the D'Avalos, Orsini, Loffredo, Grillo and Cattaneo feudal families.
Main sights
- Benedictine Abbey of San Michele Arcangelo, existing at least from 1078 and probably built in the 5th century. The Norman lord Humphrey of HautevilleHumphrey of HautevilleHumphrey of Hauteville , surnamed Abagelard, was the Count of Apulia and Calabria from 1051 to his death.Humphrey was probably the youngest son of Tancred of Hauteville by his first wife Muriel. Some sources make Geoffrey and Serlo his younger brothers...
and his son Rudolph made large donations to the abbey, which flourished until the 15th century. Afterwards it decayed due to numerous wars ravaging the country in those years. The Abbey Church (12th century), dedicated to St. Michael, has a notable portal and a Norman-style bell tower with mullioned windows. Renewed starting from 1590, it received a cylindrical cupola in 1650. - Mother Church (1776), rebuilt in late Baroque style over a pre-existing medieval structure. In the aisles are four canvasses by Mattia PretiMattia PretiMattia Preti was an Italian Baroque artist who worked in Italy and Malta.- Biography :Born in the small town of Taverna in Calabria, Preti was sometimes called Il Cavalier Calabrese...
. There is also a 15th century panel of the Madonna with Child. - Church of St. Stephen (11th century)
- Church of St. Lucy (11th century)
- Church of Madonna della Muova (11th century) and Madonna delle Grazie (1065).
- 16th centuries churches of St. Roch, St. Augustin, .
See also
- Humphrey of HautevilleHumphrey of HautevilleHumphrey of Hauteville , surnamed Abagelard, was the Count of Apulia and Calabria from 1051 to his death.Humphrey was probably the youngest son of Tancred of Hauteville by his first wife Muriel. Some sources make Geoffrey and Serlo his younger brothers...
- Robert, Count of MontescagliosoRobert, Count of MontescagliosoRobert was the first Norman count of Montescaglioso.He wa a nephew of Robert Guiscard through one of his sisters and a brother, Geoffrey of Conversano....
- Rudolf, Count of MontescagliosoRudolf, Count of MontescagliosoRudolf was the second Norman count of Montescaglioso from the death of his father Robert in 1080....
- Henry, Count of MontescagliosoHenry, Count of MontescagliosoHenry or Enrico di Navarra , born Rodrigo, was a son of García Ramírez of Navarre and Marguerite de l'Aigle, and brother of Queen Margaret of Sicily, who made him Count of Montescaglioso and then Count of the Principate .-Arrival in Sicily :The chief primary source for Henry's life is the Sicilian...
External links
- Official website
- APT Basilicata (hospitality, transports and events - english)
- "Murgia Materana" Park
- GAL Bradanica
- Basilicatanet.it
- http://www.montescaglioso.net/index.php?q=node/1115
- Polisportiva Libertas Montescaglioso